Our Missouri Podcast

Welcome to Our Missouri, a podcast about the people, places, culture, and history of the 114 counties and independent city of St. Louis that comprise the great state of Missouri. Your host is SHSMO oral historian and lifelong Jefferson City resident Sean Rost, who earned his PhD from the University of Missouri specializing in twentieth-century US, Missouri, and African American history.

Engaging with subject matter experts, each episode focuses on a topic related to the state's complex history and culture, from publications about Missouri’s history to current projects undertaken by organizations to preserve and promote local institutions. Join Rost as he explores what makes Our Missouri.

Our Missouri is free and generously provided thanks to the support of State Historical Society of Missouri members and donors. Books featured on the show are available for purchase through the SHSMO Richard Bookstore; purchases support the State Historical Society of Missouri.

New episodes are posted twice a month. You can also subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher.

Seasons

Episodes

Summer Series 2022: Marjorie Paxson (NWMC, Part 4)

This episode features excerpts from an oral history conversation between Marjorie “Marj” Paxson and Jean Gaddy Wilson recorded in 2007 for the National Women and Media Collection’s 20th anniversary.

Read more about Summer Series 2022: Marjorie Paxson (NWMC, Part 4)

Summer Series 2022: In Their Own Words – Elizabeth Engel, Laura Jolley, Aleksandra Kinlen, and Heather Richmond (NWMC, Part 3)

Elizabeth Engel, Laura Jolley, Aleksandra Kinlen, and Heather Richmond from the State Historical Society of Missouri join us to discuss their involvement in the creation of the exhibit, In Their Own Words: Celebrating the National Women and Media Collection.

Read more about Summer Series 2022: In Their Own Words – Elizabeth Engel, Laura Jolley, Aleksandra Kinlen, and Heather Richmond (NWMC, Part 3)

Summer Series 2022: Women’s Page Journalism & Soft News – Kimberly Voss (NWMC, Part 2)

Dr. Kimberly Voss joins us to talk about her writings on women in journalism, particularly her books on women’s pages in newspapers and how she utilized the National Women and Media Collection for her research.

Read more about Summer Series 2022: Women’s Page Journalism & Soft News – Kimberly Voss (NWMC, Part 2)

Summer Series 2022: Jean Gaddy Wilson (NWMC, Part 1)

This episode features excerpts from an oral history with Jean Gaddy Wilson recorded in 2022 for the National Women and Media Collection. Wilson discusses her career in media, her involvement in the Journalism and Women Symposium (JAWS), and her role in the establishment of the National Women and Media Collection (NWMC).

Read more about Summer Series 2022: Jean Gaddy Wilson (NWMC, Part 1)

Episode 68: Ensign Fountains (Water & Waterways, Part 8)

This episode features host Sean Rost discussing the National Humane Alliance and its efforts to distribute and construct multiple Ensign Fountains in Missouri in the early 20th Century.

Read more about Episode 68: Ensign Fountains (Water & Waterways, Part 8)

Episode 67: “The Thunderbird Spirit” – Andrew Olden (Water & Waterways, Part 7)

This episode features a conversation with Andrew Olden about Civilian Conservation Corps Company 1743, an African American unit based at Washington State Park along the banks of the Big River near De Soto, Missouri, in the mid-1930s.

Read more about Episode 67: “The Thunderbird Spirit” – Andrew Olden (Water & Waterways, Part 7)

Episode 66: “Ozark Voices” – Alex Primm (Water & Waterways, Part 6)

Alex Primm joins us to talk about his new book, Ozark Voices: Oral Histories from the Heartland, and his 40+ year career alongside the rivers, gravel bars, forests, and people of the Missouri Ozarks.

Read more about Episode 66: “Ozark Voices” – Alex Primm (Water & Waterways, Part 6)

Episode 65: “A River in the City of Fountains” – Amahia Mallea (Water & Waterways, Part 5)

Amahia Mallea joins us to talk about her book, A River in the City of Fountains, and the complex history of the great river known as the "Big Muddy."

Read more about Episode 65: “A River in the City of Fountains” – Amahia Mallea (Water & Waterways, Part 5)

Episode 64: Imagining the Mississippi River – Thomas Ruys Smith (Water & Waterways, Part 4)

University of East Anglia,'s Thomas Ruys Smith discusses the cultural life of the Mississippi River and one of its most notable residents, Mark Twain.

Read more about Episode 64: Imagining the Mississippi River – Thomas Ruys Smith (Water & Waterways, Part 4)

Episode 63: Farmhouses – Susan Sundermeyer (Water & Waterways, Part 3)

Susan Sundermeyer discussing the book and exhibit, Farmhouses: Before the Great Flood of 1993 - Life in the Chamois and Morrison Missouri River Bottoms.

Read more about Episode 63: Farmhouses – Susan Sundermeyer (Water & Waterways, Part 3)

Subscribe to Our Missouri Podcast Episodes

Featured Events

Aug 16

1918 Flu Epidemic in Missouri

Join Kathleen Seale and discover how different communities in Missouri experienced and responded to the 1918 flu epidemic.

Aug 20 Aug 20

African American Heritage in the Ozarks: Southwest Missouri Digitization Event

Presented in partnership with the U.S. National Park Service, join us at George Washington Carver National Monument for a free digitization event focused on African American heritage in the Ozarks! Residents of Newton, Jasper, Lawrence, McDonald, Barry, Barton, and Dade counties, as well as points throughout the southwestern Ozarks, are invited. The event is free, but registration is required.

Aug 24 Aug 24

Voices of the National Women and Media Collection

Hear from three women whose records are archived as part of the National Women and Media Collection. Andrea Stone, Betsey Bruce, and Sheila Gibbons will talk about the changing roles for women in the media industry; trends for the future; and how they were able to navigate careers in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Online and free, registration required.

Aug 25 Aug 25

Opening Reception: Mr. Pruitt’s Possum Town

Join us at the Center for Missouri Studies on August 25 for the opening reception of Mr. Pruitt’s Possum Town with curator Dr. Berkley Hudson, professor emeritus at the Missouri School of Journalism.

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